


Mirrors

by brejamison



Series: Dick Grayson Must Die [2]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, Titans (TV 2018)
Genre: Angst, Blood and Gore, Blood and Injury, Canon-Typical Violence, Episode: s02e01 Trigon, Gen, Hallucinations, Hurt Dick Grayson, Insomnia, Nightmares, Post-Episode: s02e01 Trigon, Temporary Character Death, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-20
Updated: 2020-03-20
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:29:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23234755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brejamison/pseuds/brejamison
Summary: In which Dick dreams about what could have happened against Trigon.
Relationships: Dick Grayson & Koriand’r & Garfield Logan & Raven, Dick Grayson & Raven, Garfield Logan & Raven
Series: Dick Grayson Must Die [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1670542
Kudos: 51





	Mirrors

The power gurgled and spun around Rachel and her father, lighting up the field around them with electric fire. In flashes of blue, a portal opened up, a gaping hole in the untouchable fabric of the sky. Rachel shoved and the intergalactic demon stumbled backward, hooves scraping against the charred grass. The electric power crackled around him, tearing him apart as he yelled his revenge, a last-ditch effort to change her mind. 

She yelled back, screaming in rage at all he had done to her and forced him deeper into the maw. Stealing her childhood, killing her mother, torturing her friends. It all ended right here, right now. The demon reached out, a hooked claw piercing the air. A small spark lept between his fingertip and the crystal in her forehead. 

In a sudden implosion, the portal collapsed on itself, Trigon disappearing forever. A shockwave blasted across the property, knocking the Titans off their feet. The house shook at the rafters, years of dust cascading to the ground in brown waterfalls as the trees shook, car alarms blaring. 

Dick coughed roughly as he pulled himself upright. He leaned on an elbow, reaching for Gar's knee. "Gar?" he asked, shaking gently. The boy stirred, blinking at him. 

"Dick?" 

"Yeah," he breathed. "You good?" 

The boy frowned, making a move to sit up. Dick waved a hand at him, pressing a palm strongly to his chest. "Don't. Just, stay put for a minute."

Gar sighed, collapsing. "Sounds good," he panted, wincing as a fresh wave of pain rolled in from his, well, everywhere. There wasn't a spot of flesh on the boy that wasn't marred with blood or bruises and Dick worried about shock and internal bleeding. The man heard stirring on the porch, his eyes quickly catching a quick glance at Kory before diverting to the field. Rachel was standing, shoulders hunched, head bowed, in the center of an intricate circle scorched into the burnt ground. 

"Rachel!" he called, rolling to his feet. He advanced, Kory making a noise of warning behind him. He faltered just for a moment, eventually giving her a determined nod and continuing forward. She disagreed but went to help the others to their feet rather than argue a moot point. Slowly, he approached the goth girl, boots crunching on the charred remains of the earth.

"Rachel? You okay?" he wondered, head titled in concern. Cautiously, he rounded to her front, concern etched into the lines of his face. "...Rache?"

She blinked and was looking directly at him. "Dick." 

"Yeah. Are you okay? You..." He inspected the area, trying to make heads and tails of what had just happened. "Did you kill him?" 

"He's gone." 

"For good?" 

"He's gone." 

Frowning, he padded in a circle to face her again, taking in every detail of her face. The crystal was new and glowed brightly, but didn't look terribly different from when she had left him on the porch. Her expression was perfectly impassive, unreadable and stoic. Hardly the face of a girl who had just suffered so terribly and incinerated her father to another dimension. He reached out for her shoulder. She wasn't even breathing. 

"Rache-" 

Suddenly, her arm shot out, thumb digging into the center of his forehead as she grabbed his face. 

He blinked and was on the ground, flat on his back and curled in pain. Distantly, worried cries came from the porch, sounding warped and garbled as the Titans called out his name. 

"Stay back-!" he shouted back, clumsily climbing to his feet. "Stay there!" They faltered in their tracks, obeying orders but looking plenty unhappy about doing so. Dick hobbled upright, frowning at Rachel. Her crystal glowed in time with his pounding headache (and wasn't that new?), magnifying it with every pulse. Just a minute ago he had been relatively fine, sore and dazed but functional. Now, though, the sun was too bright behind the thick clouds and he found it difficult to straighten up. And it was getting worse by the second. 

"Rachel, what... what's going on?" 

She snapped and they were in a graveyard. Dick flinched, recognizing the old man and child statue, the distant cityscape, the tombstones. Rachel was staring at him with red eyes, hair fluttering in a nonexistent breeze. 

"What is this?" he asked, daring not to turn around or look anywhere else other than her eyes should an all too familiar couple of names catch his eye. He searched her for an answer. "Why are we here?" 

"He's gone." 

Snatching her hand, he swallowed thickly. "Rachel. Look at me." 

"He's gone." She pushed him backward and he tripped, falling into an open grave. 

"Rachel!" he screamed, landing roughly. 

He looked up, hair tussled and eyes wide, and found a version of himself staring back. He yelped, scrambling away from the black eyes and evil smirk. 

"I just want to talk," his reflection cooed. 

Dick ignored him, pivoting and looking around. "Rachel! That's enough! Let's go home," he called, finding himself in a hall of empty mirrors. The one before him was the only one with a reflection - his reflection, full of sharp teeth and evil promises.

"Isn't that what you want?" it continued, head swaying back and forth like a predator sizing up its prey. "To talk to me?" 

Slowly, Dick turned back, taking in the reflection's every detail. It smirked back at him, lips tight, and breathing heavily. It was wearing the outfit he was in - shirt, jacket, and jeans. Except it was incorrect in the most minor details; a few missing pockets, a grass stain on the wrong knee. It was almost as if someone had tried to recreate it from memory. It wasn't his real reflection.

"Rachel?" he asked, voice reaching out in pain and sympathy. He touched the cold glass and the reflection cowered back, rippling as if punched. 

"We can be a family!" it screamed, voiced pained. "We'll be together!" 

Sadly, Dick sighed. This must be what he had said to her when he was under Trigon's control - a demonic warped version of himself - screaming and pleading for her to understand. "Rachel..." He touched the glass again, intentionally, more firm. The reflection was whimpering, backed away from the surface. 

"Dick!" 

He spun, seeing Rachel trapped in the mirror opposite him. "Rachel?" 

She was crying, reaching for the surface of her mirror with fingertips rotted and black. Her voice was muted, face shadowy and obscure but he knew those eyes instantly, the same terror and confusion in them he had seen worn by a girl in a cheap hotel bathtub, cowering from herself. 

His reflection screamed angrily, pounding on the glass and snarling. Dick jerked away, retreating to the relative safety of the center of the room. 

"Dick!" Rachel continued screaming, her voice muffled behind layers of glass. "He's here!" 

He looked back just in time to see his reflection's mirror crack under its fists, a spiderweb forming in the shards. It screamed in a thousand voices, fingertips stabbing through the cracks. Dick backed away, staring in horror as the thing warped and bent, pulling its way through the veins. 

The mirror behind him thumped dully as Rachel pounded on it. "Dick, get out!" His reflection brought its head up, screaming at him through an outstretched jaw, black swirling around inside of it. "RUN!" Rachel shrieked, her eyes lighting up red as she called her power, preparing to fight.

Dick pivoted and bolted, crashing through a mirror as the room exploded in glass shards behind him, Rachel's enraged scream reverberating in his head. 

He was on the ground in the field, flat on his back. The Titans called for him in concern from the porch, but he sat up, waving them back. 

"Stay there!" he shouted, large eyes flinging to Rachel instantly. He shot to his feet, hands outstretched and panic hitching his breath. He understood. He knew what was happening to her. "Rachel!" he insisted, grabbing her by the arms and shaking urgently. "Rachel, look at me!" 

She looked at him. "I'm still here." 

He'd never been so unhappy to be right. "You get the hell out of her!" he shouted, shaking roughly. Rage and violence filled him and he welcomed it as an old friend, always reliable in a time of crisis. 

"Make me." 

He was blasted across the field, smacking harshly into a tree. Landing with a cough, he blinked his head clear and heard Gar call for him in concern. "Kory!" he commanded, staggering to his feet. 

She stepped forward dutifully, arms outstretched to keep the Titans at bay. 

Trigon smirked at him through Rachel's lips, turning from the porch to Dick in amusement. He watched as the mortal man climbed to his feet, intense glare aimed at him. "And she will bring about the end of the world," the demon shrugged, gesturing to Rachel's body. 

Dick ignored him. "Rachel...!" 

Trigon waved a hand and Dick stumbled in place, breath hitching. He twisted and checked his back, finding three deep scratches marring his skin. They bled sluggishly, deep red staining his paleness. Huffing, he set his jaw, leveling the demon with a determined glare. 

Ten steps. 

"Rachel, listen to me--"

Trigon twitched his head and Dick fell with a pained gasp, his knee caving to the side in a way that was so wrong. Stumbling, he hobbled another step forward. 

Nine steps. 

A snap and he was pierced through his back, a long, twisting stab deep into his shoulder. 

Eight steps. 

Three fingers waved and he was on his knees, vomiting blood from his mouth and nose. 

Seven steps. 

"R... Rachel, I know you can hear me!" 

Something cracked and he bit back a scream. Catching his breath, he staggered to his feet. 

Six steps. 

Trigon was starting to look concerned, taking a hesitant half-step back. He growled, clenching his fist and throwing it to the side. 

"Dick!" the porch screaming in worry. Jason yanked at his hair as he paced circles beside Gar, muttering and cursing under his breath. Dawn and Hank held each other as Donna watched the scene, face purposefully stoic as a statue. Kory heard her muttering and looked at her in confusion. 

The Amazonian's eyes were glued to Dick's form, barely blinking as she watched him struggle. "Come on, Dick. Get up," she urged under her breath, fists tight and shoulders stiff. "Get up. Get up." 

Kory turned to the field, silently seconding the words. 

"Rachel, listen to me...!" Dick gasped, face inches from the charred earth. He heaved heavily, spitting a glob of blood into the dirt. Grunting, he pulled one leg under him. It shook but he straightened, wobbling like a leave in the wind. "Rachel..."

Five steps. 

Trigon growled at him. "Stay back!" he commanded in a thousand voices, Rachel's eyes lighting up in black fire. Her shadow surged forward, hands outstretched for a killing blow. She moved faster than they could follow, murder in her wooshing stride. 

"Dick! Look out!" Dawn screamed. 

The dust settled and Dick was latched onto her wrists, teeth bared and glaring at her. She pulled back, confused. Trigon yanked and she tried to fade back to her body, but Dick held her firm. 

"Let me go!" she shrieked in sudden rage. "Put me down!" 

"No," he snarled back, holding tight even as her black fingertips sank into his wrists, piercing the veins and letting blood flow free. "I've let you down too many times," he said. "I won't do it again." 

The shadowy creature stilled, eyes widening at him. "Dick?" she squeaked out, fight draining from her. 

"Rache." 

He choked suddenly, a spear of black power stabbing through his middle. Black blood poured from his mouth and he blinked in shock. With a squelch, the weapon was removed, blood and entrails splashing loudly to the ground. 

" _No_!" Rachel's shadow cried, panicking. 

Dick released her wrists and cupped her face, leaving a smear of black goo on her round cheeks. "Rachel... I'm coming for you." He choked around the blood. "Hang on. I'm coming." 

Unable to resist any longer, she was sucked back into her body with a forlorn cry, Trigon straightening and rolling her shoulders. 

Four steps. 

"I'm coming..." Dick croaked, hobbling forward. 

Three steps. 

Another sputtering step, hands grasping weakly at the gaping hole in his center. 

Two steps.

"Go Dick," Donna breathed, her mantra repeating between short Amazonian prayers. 

"Kick his ass, Robin!" Jason yelled. The other Titans quickly joined in, urging loudly for their friend. Gar and Kory stayed silent, quiet tears slipping down their cheeks. The others didn't know Rachel like they did. They didn't know who - what - Dick had become in the last three years. This wasn't a victory lap; it was a Greek tragedy. A train wreck in slow motion as the train ate itself alive. 

One step. 

Trigon faltered, going to move away. 

Dick grabbed her wrist, holding her in place. "No," he hissed. The demon looked at him, fear reflecting in the red of his daughter's possessed eyes. "I'm not scared of you, Rachel. Stab me, hurt me, kill me." Eyes pinching shut, he collapsed forward, landing against the girl heavily. 

Zero steps. 

"I'll be right here by you. No matter what." 

"Dick..." she squeaked, choking on a thick lump of emotions. "I'm so sorry." Sobbing, she buried her face in his neck, wrapping her arms around him. 

He made a wheezing sound, tiredly pulling his arms up to squeeze her. 

"You don't understand," she shook, tensing in his hold.

His legs faltered and she caught him, keeping him upright. "Rache," he breathed. "It doesn't matter-"

"I'm so sorry to tell you, my son." His eyes shot up to her as her face morphed, an extra set of eyes opening in her forehead as a wicked grin splitting her face. "But I can no longer allow you to be a part of my family. Now, you will die with the rest of the world."

Dick was dead before he hit the ground. 

.,.,.,.,.,.,.,

Dick was in the control room, curled up in the chair. His eyes were turned to the monitors but looking past them as images replayed unbidden in his mind's eye. Rachel, taken over by her father. Trapped inside her own head as Trigon destroyed the world, tortured by images and powers she couldn't control. 

Fire. Rot. Blood. Death. 

He sucked in a breath suddenly as her scream echoed in the darkest corners of himself, mind defensively surging back to reality. The clock read 3:34 AM and he sighed, scrubbing a hand over his pale face. Forty-three hours since his last decent bout of sleep. Since he last hit REM. And this was why. 

One way or another he was going to fail these kids. He would let them down, betray their trust, and disappoint their unearned faith in him. He had taken them on a road trip, spilled his guts to Bruce in a move that left him feeling like a twelve-year-old again and decided to come back _here_ of all places. As if they weren't haunted by enough ghosts as it was, he just had to go and heap a swarming mass of his own demons onto their already troubled existence. 

Forty-fucking-three hours of wakefulness. Of thoughts and spirals and nightmares. 

"Well isn't this a familiar sight," a familiar voice behind him didn't say. "Burning the midnight oil, are we? What, all my expensive mattresses and high-end sheets not good enough for you?"

Dick sighed, head falling against the chair. It was going to be a long night. 


End file.
